Sen. Bill Cassidy, co-author of a high-profile Obamacare repeal bill, isn’t so sure Congress should take another crack at undoing the law this year. But he said lawmakers should move on legislation to make health care more affordable.

"We should have another vote, absolutely … if we've got the ability to lower the cost to the average American who's purchasing insurance," the Louisiana Republican, who’s pushing a new set of health care proposals, told POLITICO's Pulse Check podcast.

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Cassidy last year helped lead Senate Republicans' fight to repeal the Affordable Care Act, although the bill he crafted with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) was pulled for lacking enough Republican support. The CBO projected the legislation would lead to "millions" more uninsured Americans.

Cassidy repeatedly sidestepped questions about whether Republicans should hold another vote on repealing the ACA this year. "It’s not quite that simple," Cassidy said. "The individual mandate is gone, which for many people, that was the heart and soul of the ACA."

But he said that one lesson from the repeal fight was that Republicans need to be realistic about what Obamacare changes are actually achievable.

However, Cassidy said he wants to resurrect the bipartisan plan to prop up Obamacare's troubled individual insurance market, which fell apart in March after a fight over abortion funding. He argued that pressure from voters outraged over premium hikes could spark cooperation between Republicans and Democrats, though he acknowledged election year politics could complicate those efforts.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is urging Republicans to address health care during the August recess Mitch McConnell just canceled, but the Republican majority leader said he wants to focus on President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees and spending bills. But the signal from Schumer is clear: Democrats, for the first time in almost a decade, see health care as a positive issue for them ahead of the midterms.

Cassidy last week released a new package of health care ideashe hopes will jump-start bipartisan conversation on lowering costs. The plan includes a mix of familiar conservative ideas — like encouraging the use of health savings accounts and short-term health plans — as well as proposals with bipartisan support, like increasing price transparency and taking on health care monopolies. The plan also floats novel ideas, such as instructing HHS to investigate racial disparities in health care and make recommendations to Congress.

To sell his plan, Cassidy has used rhetorical flourishes that invoke Trump's speaking style. He’s blasting "lawyers and lobbyists" for "rigging" the health system and saying that his new plan will "make health care affordable again."

"I think we need to have a different approach where the patient is first and not the lobbyist," Cassidy said on the podcast.

Cassidy also said he didn't regret his high-profile decision to appear with late-night host Jimmy Kimmel last year during the height of the Obamacare repeal effort. Kimmel initially celebrated Cassidy’s health care efforts but later claimed the senator "lied right to my face" about his promise to protect people with pre-existing conditions. Public health groups generally sided with Kimmel in the fight.

"I’ll engage with anybody," Cassidy said. "I just assume, charitably, they did not understand."

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